My Southern Ladies Training

I did not grow up in the south.  I grew up in a place where most of the people there were born in the south.  That being said, most of the people had very southern ways.  I spent my formative years there and I still can remember it.  For starters, the women who made me let it be known that you should not go out the house looking like your not ready to meet the world.  They got dressed in the morning for the day like they got dressed for work or church.  Even if they were going to the post office, they looked presentable.  In a way, they developed a signature.  I can recall the different products that represented people.  Pastor Parker would don a turbine when her hair was not done.  Aunt Brunette wore her signature Chocolate Raspberry lipstick.  Laura Cheatham could be seen in the evenings and mornings walking her dog named Brown Sugar.  Carolyn Black has worn her hair in a bun since I can remember.  I can tell you who is coming down the street even from the back.  For the men, the defined themselves by where they worked.  Brother Bolling worked at Wendy's.  Brother Morgan worked at Illinois Power.  Rev. Downey worked for the city.  Now that I think of it, every Rev. looked like one wherever they went.  Sunday was the greatest day of the week.  Some of the southern women cooked two meat or entrees on Sunday.  Dinner was always early and it followed church service.  Most of the town went to church somewhere.  Whether it was Greater Faith Tabernacle, Shiloh Baptist, Pavey Chapel or Lively Stone, we went to church.  On Sunday you could not turn on the television and we went to church all day long.  Other days of the week paled when it came to Sunday.  On Sunday, we wore our best clothing.  There was no such thing as casual and you said greetings to everyone.  It was a genteel society, but I loved it.  The rhythms and the waves helped you time life and gave it meaning.  When I look back at my life and how I lived it, I owe most of who I am today to those women and men.  They seemed to put a little elegance in everything they did.  They ate on table cloths and wore spring coats.  They stopped to say hello and acknowledged my very existence.  For that I am grateful.  That town has changed, but it is still very southern.  The "all you can eat" buffet has the best mashed potatoes I have ever eaten.  Most folks still stop and speak and you can find someone in dress and heels in the grocery store.  I was healed by this place.  Now that I live in a town where sleeping and waking are not always in rhythm and Veteran's Parkway has three lanes of traffic, I thank God for my Southern ladies training.  They taught me to be human in a very cold and cruel world.